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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23777485">Queen of Hearts</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/CupofSonic/pseuds/CupofSonic'>CupofSonic</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Valere [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Doctor Who (2005)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Pining</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 20:35:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>19,547</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23777485</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/CupofSonic/pseuds/CupofSonic</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Continuation of Heart of Hearts, this loosely follows season 4 of New Who but with a few twists</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>The Doctor (Doctor Who)/Rose Tyler, The Master (Simm) &amp; Rose Tyler</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Valere [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1409509</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>133</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>181</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Doctor stepped out of his TARDIS, gripping his Panama hat to keep it on his head. This body had never been particularly fond of rock music and the undulating sea of people in front of him combined with the overly loud nonsense blaring out of the speakers set his teeth on edge. Ace was just behind him, looking around with wonder. "We're at a bloody Queen concert!" She exclaimed with absolute delight. "Professor!" </p><p> </p><p>She was gripping his arm in her excitement, bouncing on her heels in a way that wasn't entirely in character. The Doctor sighed, adjusting his grip on his umbrella so he wouldn't lose it. "There's still an alien threat we need to handle."</p><p> </p><p>"But it's Queen, Professor," she whined, looking at the stage with naked longing. </p><p> </p><p>The Doctor sighed in defeat. He couldn't deny her this. Not with what he knew was coming. "Fine. I suppose, if we were to split up to investigate and you found yourself looking over by the stage..."</p><p> </p><p>Her eyes lit up, "I'm on it! No alien slipping past me!" She bolted off into the crowd, somehow managing to part the sea of bodies in front of her. </p><p> </p><p>Right. Now he had an alien threat to find and deal with on his own. But she deserved the break. </p><p> </p><p>He shoved his way through, one hand maintaining a firm grip on his hat and the other wacking the shins of anyone who came too close or wouldn't move out of the way. He wished the TARDIS would have landed them a bit further out, but the old girl was in one of her moods. </p><p> </p><p>He was near one of the back stage doors when the crowd suddenly parted and he tripped as he was all but shoved out. </p><p> </p><p>A pair of slim arms easily caught him, he took a moment to admire their strength before quickly straightening himself out. "Thank you,(or consider an exclamation mark)" he shouted to be heard over the music as he dusted himself off before settling his hat back on his head. </p><p> </p><p>"No problem," his rescuer shouted back and he looked up from inspecting his shoes for dirt only to be hopelessly caught in the gold depths of her eyes. </p><p> </p><p>She had to be one of the most enchanting women he'd ever seen. </p><p> </p><p>He started wishing he was more poetic in this body. Sure, this body was adequately philosophical, but he found himself desperately wishing to describe her and nothing he could think of would ever be able to properly sum up the color of her hair and the beautiful light in her eyes. </p><p> </p><p>His cheeks heated with a blush when he noticed how intently she was looking him over. But why? He wasn't some youth! He could handle being looked at by a beautiful woman. But it wasn't just that, something in her gaze called out to him. She knew him, somehow. It made him nervous; the majority of the time, when someone knew him but he didn't know them, it was either an issue with the timelines or someone trying to kill him. And he much preferred to stay alive, thank you very much. </p><p> </p><p>"You wouldn't happen to have seen a tallish bloke in weird old fashioned clothes that don't quite fit him right, would you?" she asked and he blinked at her. </p><p> </p><p>A future him perhaps? Or a past one? She couldn't possibly be talking about the cricketer... or maybe she just had an odd friend. "No, I haven't, sorry."</p><p> </p><p>"No problem." She seemed to almost dismiss him and, oh, he did not like that one bit. He still wanted her attention, like it was his right. Oh this was bloody ridiculous. He wasn't a bloody peacock that needed the attention of everyone that struck his fancy. </p><p> </p><p>"You wouldn't happen to have seen a young lady around? Patched leather jacket? Braided hair?" he asked, trying to keep her there just a bit longer. </p><p> </p><p>Her eyes flicked to the sea of people in front of them and he suddenly remembered that they were currently at a rock concert. His description of Ace matched at least a third of the people here. "Right. Never mind then."</p><p> </p><p>"Good luck with that." </p><p> </p><p>He mumbled a thanks and watched her turn and move to an unguarded side gate that was padlocked shut. There was a flash of blue light and a distinct buzzing noise that he thought was familiar. The lock sparked and popped open. That technology wasnt native to earth, that much he knew. Was this girl the alien threat the TARDIS had brought them here to investigate?</p><p> </p><p>He resolved to follow after her and slowly made chase, sticking to the shadows as much as he could so she wouldn't spot him. She kept taking readings with the strange device that produced the blue light. Some sort of sonic probe? He wondered. </p><p> </p><p>She cursed under her breath, pausing near a doorway. "What the hell are these readings?" She tapped the device against her palm before trying again. </p><p> </p><p>His time senses tingled, nearly making him shiver. Something was about to change. Something big. "Move!" He called out, dashing down the hallway and pushing her to the ground. </p><p> </p><p>An absolutely massive explosion shook the entire building causing part of the roof to collapse where she'd been standing. </p><p> </p><p>He shifted his weight to make sure she wouldn't be hurt in the fall and let out a rough breath when she landed on top of him. </p><p> </p><p>"Did you follow me?" she asked incredulously, scrabbling to get off him. </p><p> </p><p>"Never mind that. I need to get to the source of that explosion." He started off down the hall and was startled when she went after him. "What are you doing?"</p><p> </p><p>"I have a feeling my idiot is responsible for this," she said in way of reply and now the Doctor truly feared she was talking about a future him. </p><p> </p><p>"You have your own personal idiot?" he joked instead of a proper response. </p><p> </p><p>She just shook her head and kept going. </p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>"Then what happened?" Donna asked, looking up from her magazine.</p><p> </p><p>Rose rerouted the last bit of wiring she had and slid out from under the console. "Turns out that that idiot had somehow found the Doctor's companion and they'd blown up this spaceship. By the time we got there, they were picking it over for parts."</p><p> </p><p>Donna cackled. "I can't imagine Mr. Prissy picking anything over for parts. What if he got soot on his jacket?"</p><p> </p><p>The Master shot Donna a dirty look. "Just because I have a higher standard for my appearance than you humans," he emphasized 'humans' like a curse, "does not mean I am afraid of doing what needs to be done." </p><p> </p><p>There was a rather loud snort from behind Donna's magazine, "Keep telling yourself that."</p><p> </p><p>"<em> Anyways </em>," Rose broke in, trying to get them to stop. They argued worse than cats and dogs. "That's why the TARDIS will only play Queen music now. Seems she took a liking to it."</p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>Rose slipped back under the console, a new circuit board ready to be installed waiting in her hands. The TARDIS hummed thoughtfully and put some music on. Rose pointedly ignored it, trying to avoid being drawn back into the memories of that day. </p><p> </p><p>The past Doctor had been so serious, no matter how silly he'd tried to be. Rose couldn't help but wonder if he was okay. </p><p> </p><p>Her little run-ins with the Doctor when he didn’t know her were starting to wear her a bit thin. It didn't help that the Master had immediately picked up on her ridiculous crush and had teased her about it the entire time. </p><p> </p><p>She burned her fingers and cursed. Right. Now wasn't the time to get lost in memories. She was supposed to be distracting herself from memories, as a matter of fact. </p><p> </p><p>But she could still remember all the silly little things about him. He was still the Doctor, just like the one in 1972 had been the Doctor. But they weren't <em> her </em>Doctor. </p><p> </p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> "Hold on a minute!" Ace shouted. "Who the hell are you two? Like really? Because you can't just be normal people and you aren't with UNIT either." </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> "I'd like to know that as well," the Doctor agreed.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Rose looked pained and he wished there was a way to take her pain from her. "I can't tell you." </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> "You know me in the future," The Doctor finally realized, resisting the urge to look at Harold Saxon again; what a ridiculous name. He couldn't be the Doctor. He usually went out of his way to annoy his past selves upon meeting and Harold hadn't done anything of the sort. Well. Aside from kissing Rose.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> He had to suppress a shudder at the thought. It just felt wrong, the thought of Rose kissing someone else. And besides, she hadn't been too pleased to be receiving the kiss. So perhaps it had all been a joke. He wasn't sure, but Saxon seemed the mischievous sort. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> She nodded. "My past, your future." There was something so terribly fragile in her expression, a sense of endless longing.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> It was probably for the best that they went their separate ways. Besides, he was going to meet her again anyway. "Well, I look forward to meeting you again." He said sincerely, tipping his hat to her. "To the days yet to come." </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Rose's eyes flashed gold and she gave him a slightly wet smile. "All my love to long ago." </em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>A massive thank you to Stratisphyre</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>April 27th. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Not really much of a date. He'd seen thousands of them, mostly without knowing it, but now, the date was special. Was important. And he’d probably end up marking each one that passed for the rest of his lives. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jackie had insisted on a cake. A whole little celebration of sorts. "My Rose may not be here but that's never stopped me from celebrating her birthday and it won't stop me now," she'd said with a pointed look at the Doctor, probably remembering the year he'd accidentally skipped. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And while he couldn’t blame her for needing to mark the date, the five of them sitting around Pete's massive dining room table while Jackie and Mickey talk about how much they missed Rose was in no way fun. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The stories they told were enchanting, a nice little glimpse into Rose's life before he'd met her, but then they'd run out of stories and turned to look at him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had so many stories about her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Stories about the people and planets she'd helped save, the exact way her eyes would burn as she shouted down aliens twice her size, the wonder on her face when they went somewhere new, even if it wasn't where he promised. How much she'd saved him by just being </span>
  <em>
    <span>her.</span>
  </em>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was all too much and not enough at the same time. Too much to let out at dinner with her family and never enough because all he had were stories. Unless he could make the cannon more precise, their chances of seeing Rose again were astronomically low. He couldn't give them Rose back. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>So he'd run, like he knew best, because a cyberman had once told him that emotions hurt and destroy. He'd never agreed more. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*** </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was sitting on the roof alone when the door opened up, letting someone, probably Jackie, out. He didn’t say anything, just kept looking at the stars and wishing he was back in his TARDIS. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There were gaps now, entire patches of night sky gone dark, their stars lost to whatever plague was destroying them. Jackie came over and sat next to him, groaning with the effort. "Need to get some chairs up here," Jackie muttered, "I'm too huge to be getting up and down off the floor."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She passed him a cup of tea and a fairy cake, letting him keep his silence. He'd been surprised how much of a comfort Jackie had proved to be since he'd first been trapped here. Sure he griped and complained about her mothering, but he couldn't lie to himself about secretly enjoying it. His last self would have run at the thought of Jackie Tyler mothering him. But it was nice. He had a sense of belonging he hadn't felt in a long time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He fit with them, with Jackie and Pete and Mickey. He had a family. Which was an incredibly strange concept in of itself, made even more odd that he still seemed to fit without Rose. Maybe they just put up with him out of pity, or a sense of obligation to Rose, but he didn't think so. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose had still left behind a hole though, that none of them could properly fill without her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What happens when you find her, Doctor? You've never actually said, for all that you talk about that cannon of yours," Jackie asked, breaking the silence and pulling him out of his musings. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'll use the TARDIS to track down whatever is causing the stars going out. Make sure the dimensional walls seal up properly," he replied, finally taking a drink of his tea. It was just starting to go cool but he could never leave a cuppa from Jackie unfinished. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She turned to look at him. Her eyes were so much like Rose's, not in color, but the shape, the expressiveness. "And what about us? Do we stay here and never know what happens to you two?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Jackie-"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Don't you 'Jackie' me. I don't want to hear about how impossible it is. Rose managed to send that message through to us. I'm sure you could whip up something. I just want to know that you two are okay," Jackie finished on a whisper, hands caressing her stomach. "It's mad, the life you two live. But I'd never seen Rose happier than she was with you."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor swallowed roughly, his eyes burning. "I'll do everything I can," he promised, then focused on his tea again to get his emotions back under control. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jackie was quiet again for several minutes, seeming to take him at his word. "Do you think she's alright?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor swallowed again. The subject was one that haunted him all hours of the day, particularly late at night, when the humans were all asleep and there wasn’t enough noise ot distract him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't know. She's somehow managed to pilot the TARDIS, which shouldn't be physically possible for her. I barely managed on my own and that's only because I have a telepathic bond with the old girl." A sudden thought occurred to him, "Got any telepathic aliens in the bloodline?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jackie gave him a </span>
  <em>
    <span>look</span>
  </em>
  <span>, "No one in my family is a bleeding alien, you plum." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You never know! Lots of aliens hide on Earth and end up dan-" he choked on the word and quickly switched it, "</span>
  <em>
    <span>mingling </span>
  </em>
  <span>with the local population. Any history of migraines in your family? Or what about the original Pete?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>Original Pete</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" Jackie screeched. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well what else should I call him? He's technically a different Pete than this one, no matter how similar." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That seemed to catch Jackie off guard so she answered his question. "No, either of use have had migraines."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Then I have absolutely no idea how Rose is managing to fly the TARDIS without destroying the universe. But apparently she's doing extremely well because nothing has ended yet." He drank the rest of his tea quickly, hiding his revulsion at how cold it was. He went to stand, ready to offer a hand to Jackie to help her up when he was floored with a sudden influx of new memories. No, not new memories. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Old memories</span>
  </em>
  <span> he'd had to make himself forget.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Memories of Rose. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He clutched at his head trying to sort them out. Some from his third self, interesting. But even more interesting... that Queen concert. The man with her. She'd picked up </span>
  <em>
    <span>another</span>
  </em>
  <span> bloody pretty boy. What was it about Rose that drew them in? He knew exactly what it was. It was her, plain and simple. She was too brilliant to ever just ignore. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jackie was frantically tugging on his hands, trying to look at his face, "Doctor? Doctor what's going on? Are you alright? You're not about to do that body swapping thing again are you?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm fine, Jackie," he said softly, pushing her away just a bit. "Just remembered some things I'd forgotten."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jackie made a face, put out, "Like what? Anything actually useful?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He'd been about to reply when Jackie groaned and clutched at her stomach. "Doctor. We need to go to hospital."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What?" he squeaked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I am about to have a bloody baby and I am not doing it on this roof so you are going to help me down those stairs and we are going to bloody hospital or else." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Right, yes of course," he said, grabbing her arm and trying to get her back down the stairs as quickly as possible. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His time senses were tingling but he could worry about that later. First they had to get Jackie to hospital.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The Doctor looked over at Mickey's screen, quickly scanning the new set of data. "How the hell did we just lose a whole universe?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Don't ask me, things have been going nuts since you modified the algorithm to exclude that divergent one," Mickey muttered, scrolling through the data. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The longer the Doctor was stuck here, the more antsy he became. If Mickey had to sit through one more lecture on... well anything. He'd been on a roll recently about the divergent universe and this particularly foul sounding species called the Kromon. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Run another scan," The Doctor said, going back to his own computer. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mickey did as he asked, running the scan again. "There we go! Back online right where it should be. You should be set to jump."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor scrambled up from his desk, moving to the proper spot so the canon could send him through universes. "Right. On my mark." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The typical countdown sounded, there was a flash, and the Doctor was no longer there. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>'You've got just over two hours.' Mickey's crackly voice said over the coms device. 'Better make this a fast one.'</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It looks like I'm in central London," The Doctor replied, taking in his surroundings. "And that there was just an invasion of some sort."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He scooped up on one of the little white blobs, looking it over. "Adipose. But you're so young. What are you lot doing all the way out here?" he asked, not expecting a reply. He set the baby down and watched it toddle off to wherever it was going. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If this was the right universe, Rose, much as he hated the thought, would probably be in the middle of whatever was going on. Or at least UNIT would, so he followed the Adipose, hoping they'd lead him to Rose.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It proved to be a dead end and he watched them get beamed up. All the people on the streets who'd been screaming suddenly stopped. The Doctor looked around and realized everyone was captivated by the little invaders as they rose up into the sky. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*** </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He wandered around the general area, scanning to pick up traces of the TARDIS but nothing was coming up and his time was running out. This was the right universe. It had to be, he could feel it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>'We're pulling you back in two minutes,' Mickey said, pulling the Doctor out of his thoughts.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Excuse me." The Doctor looked up at the ginger woman currently talking to you. "A woman named Sylvia is going to show up and when she gets here can you tell her 'that bin there'? She'll understand what it means. Thanks!" She walked away before the Doctor could reply and he stared after her, gaping a bit. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The woman disappeared down an alleyway and the Doctor heard the most beautiful sound in any universe. His feet started moving before he could even properly think to run. He'd found the TARDIS! She was here. Which meant that Rose was here. "Rose!" he shouted as he entered the alley, passing through the TARDIS just as it dematerialized. He hit the wall with a hash thud, wincing as his knees banged against it. That would probably bruise. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He cursed and pushed off the wall, looking around. There was a faint impression in the filth on the ground that was very much TARDIS-shaped. So he'd just missed her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But he now knew for certain that this was the right universe, which was a massive step forward. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The canon beeped and he felt the uncomfortable tug of being pulled back to Pete's World. "We did it Mickey!" he crowed victoriously. "That was it. That's the right universe!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mickey was gobsmacked, gaping almost like a fish. "You mean you found Rose?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"More or less." The Doctor pulled the hopper off, resisting the urge to dance around the room. "I saw the TARDIS. We just need those coordinates and a few more jumps. We're nearly there!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose could have never guessed just exactly what she'd been getting herself into when she'd invited Donna on board. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She and the Master were at each other's throats constantly and it was starting to drive Rose spare.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Will you two just bloody shut up!" she shouted, startling them out of the massive row they'd been about to have. "God, you two are worse than children." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She'd hoped, after Pompeii, that a nice little trip to an alien tourist spot would be enough for them to settle a bit, but it had been nearly a week, three adventures, and currently one trip to the mall of Vega but they were still at it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You two need to sort this out. I'm going to get chips." The food court was nearby and they'd be able to find her when they were done being idiots. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Now look what you've done," The Master spat bitterly, "You upset Rose."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Me?" Donna shouted, pointing to herself. "You're the one antagonizing me!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Rose and I were just fine until you came and butted into the TARDIS!" he snapped, drawing looks from several passersby. He composed himself, straightening his tie and smoothing his jacket. "We dont need some human on the TARDIS who doesn't even understand the basics of temporal mechanics and-"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Donna held up a hand to shut him up. "I think it's very obvious you do. You and Rose would have left those people in Pompeii behind to die."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master pulled Donna into an alley so people on the mainstreet would stop staring at them. "Those people were supposed to die and you changed that!" he hissed. "We can't go around changing the timelines! The entire universe could collapse. Rose is well aware of that."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah, but on those days when you can't save everyone, Rose needs that reminder that you can save someone. That's what she needs me for. So you're stuck with me, Harold Saxon."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master groaned, "Don't call me that. I'm above such basic human-"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Rose was 'basic' and 'human' once. You don't seem to think you're better than her," Donna spit out, cutting him off again. "I'm not calling you 'Master'. It's a ridiculous name and whoever decided to give it to you was bonkers for not realizing it would completely go to your head. Now. I'm offering a truce. We get along, for Rose's sake."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She offered her hand to shake and the Master stared at it like it might bite him. "Fine," he said reluctantly, shaking her hand. "But just so we're clear: I don't like you and will kill you the second I feel like doing so."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Whatever you say, Harry," Donna muttered, wandering out of the alley. Rose had mentioned chips, after all, maybe after they ate they could do a bit of shopping; she'd seen a couple trinkets at the stalls that she happened to like quite a bit.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>"They always like this?" Martha asked, watching Donna and the Master start up another argument. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose sighed heavily, rubbing her temples. "It never stops, Martha. Sometimes I swear I can hear it in my sleep."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha rubbed a soothing hand over Rose's back. "Your shoulders are tense. When was the last time you got to properly relax?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't even remember. Before you left, I know that much." Rose groaned. "I used to get spa days. And manicures. But now I'm so worried about that idiot going off and blowing something up... it never ends."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha moved Rose infront of her and really started to rub her shoulders. "Remember that mud monster on that one spa planet?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose laughed, "Yeah. I still dont think I'll even be able to take a mud bath." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>One of the soldiers from UNIT came over with paper work Colonel Mace hadn't spoken to Rose since she'd laid into him). "Valiant, we need you to fill this out, Ma'am." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Valiant?" Rose repeated, arching an eyebrow and looking at Martha. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The soldier suddenly looked nervous but Martha calmly took the paper work from him and gestured for him to move along which he quickly did. "It's the main thing listed on your UNIT file, which I've read. It's extensive to say the least. You're as much of a mystery to them as the Doctor."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I- what?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"The records on who you were? All the Rose Tyler stuff is kept locked up tight. Even I don't have clearance and I know you. But the Valiant has a thick file and a very detailed history of helping UNIT. So look forward to that."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So you finally picked a title then," the Master said, suddenly appearing at their side and making both of them jump.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Bloody hell!" Rose cursed, smacking his arm. "I've told you not to do that."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master snickered, "But it's so much fun making you jump."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You just enjoy being a nuisance," Rose muttered, taking the paperwork from Martha so she could fill it out. "Martha, what's the date?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"April 27th, 2008." Martha rattle off quickly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose nearly dropped her pen. "It's my birthday." She said quietly, looking down at the form with surprise. "I'd be 21 if my life was normal." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master rolled his eyes. "Humans."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oi!" Martha snapped, glaring at him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose brushed it off. "It's fine." She filled out the form quickly, giving it back to Martha. "I'm going back to the TARDIS, are you going to stop by once UNIT is done?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah, Donna gone to check on her grandad?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yup. See you in a bit then." Rose ignored the Master's protests and all but ran back to the TARDIS, shutting the doors behind her. "It's my birthday," she repeated to herself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her last few birthdays, the ones she'd celebrated, had been with the Doctor. Her first birthday with the Doctor had gone by and by the time she'd thought to mention it, it had been technically two and they'd gained Jack. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jack who'd demanded the Doctor do whatever she wanted to make up for missing not one, but two birthdays. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jack, who'd been trying so hard to push them together that entire time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They, the Doctor and Jack, had decided she'd get two days of what she wanted. Rose had asked for snow. They'd gone to Woman Wept. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She could still remember the waves and the cold, Jack's silly faces as he slid across the ice, the Doctor sad and impossibly far away. He'd relaxed eventually and taught them how to slide over the waves like they were on ice skates. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her second Doctor had finally taken her to Barcelona. And he'd gotten her a new chain for her TARDIS key. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Your next birthday, Rose Tyler," he'd said, "We'll go to Darillium. They've got these massive towers and no one knows where they came from." He'd gone into a very long winded lecture about what made the towers special and how on some nights they would 'sing.' Rose had been entranced by the sound of his voice, so entranced that she hadn't realized that he'd called it 'one of the most romantic spots in the galaxy' until she was alone in bed that night. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And then she'd lost him. She could take herself to Darillium, she supposed. No, she couldn't, it would never be the same without him. But maybe... she could go back to Woman Wept. That would be nice. A bit of quiet on the waves, maybe some hot chocolate. And she could reminisce in peace. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The TARDIS hummed mournfully, missing the Doctor as well. "It's okay. I've got you," Rose said, going over to the console and running a hand over it. "You and me against the universe. It's not a bad life. And he'll get back eventually, he always does."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha looked up at the Master smugly. She had him pinned against one of UNIT's jeeps and he looked slightly nervous. Which was completely brilliant. "Now you listen to me, you pompous idiot. You may think humans are some sort of 'lesser species,' but birthdays matter to us. And they matter to Rose. So we are going to get Donna, go back to the TARDIS and do something fun for Rose's birthday. Understand?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master nodded and Matha let him go. "Good. What's Donna's phone number?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose had settled in the jump seat, wondering when anyone was going to come back. The TARDIS always felt empty when it was just the two of them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The TARDIS beeped and chimed in a way that Rose always associated with laughter, the doors opening on their own to let all her friends in. They held out what looked like a store bought sheet cake and a bottle of champagne. "Happy Birthday!" Donna and Martha chimed, followed shortly by a grumpy Master who flinched as if one or both of them had stepped on his feet. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Let's go somewhere fun," Martha said, bringing the champagne over to Rose. "Somewhere with a spa and clubs. You look like you need a break and I know I need one from UNIT."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose was gobsmacked. "What, are you serious?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Of course we are!" Donna said, shoving the cake into the Master's arms so she could hug Rose. "It's your birthday. That's not the sort of day you spend moping over the Doctor like you normally do."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I do not mope over the Doctor!" Rose said with a laugh, watching the Master struggle to hold the cake. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You do," Martha and Donna said in unison. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So come on then, blondie. Somewhere nice with lots of sun," Donna added. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Alright. You guys go get packed. Sun, spa, clubbing. I think I can manage that." Rose cracked her knuckles and started inputting their criteria into the console. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master shoved the cake back at Donna and went to help her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>If there was one thing Martha had missed from traveling, aside from Rose herself, it had to be the wardrobe room. The seemingly endless racks of clothes were always the best kind of adventure. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oi, what's with all this 70's stuff?" Donna griped at the ceiling. "You better take Rose where she intends! She deserves a nice holiday."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha looked over and was completely shocked at the dress Donna was holding. "That's my dress! But I thought we left those behind..." she went over the rack Donna was going through. It was all there, every strap of clothing they'd bought in the three months they'd been trapped in 1972. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"How on earth did this all get here? We left it. Rose used to make jokes that she'd rather die than wear polyester again."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her fingers paused when one of the coats crinkled under her touch. She slipped her hand into one of the pockets and was amazed to find several letters. All addressed to the Valiant. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That is so weird." </span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>hi everyone, I just want to let you guys not that this fic is going to be on hiatus for a while. quarantine is really starting to get to be but hopefully I can be back soon. Thank you to everyone who's been reading and commenting</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I am alive! and I bring a Chapter! I have a few ready to post but I'm going to try and space them out over the next few weeks. But I am almost done writing this fic</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>"So..." the Master drawled as he helped Rose set coordinates, "</span>
  <em>
    <span>The Valiant</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Not the worst title I've heard. Sounds a bit like the name of a ship. Where'd you come up with it?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"It was supposed to be a one off thing." Rose grumbled. "I didn't think it'd get put in UNIT's files."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"But where did it come from?" The Master asked again. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"The devil." Rose said ominously and the Master burst out laughing. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"What?" He choked out, unable to control his cackling. "You're not serious." He sobered up at the look on her face. "</span>
  <em>
    <span>You've</span>
  </em>
  <span> met the devil? I thought he was just a myth. Well, some concept of a 'Great Evil' exists in so many societies across the web of time, I supposed it makes sense. But still, that's extraordinary. What was he like?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Rude." Rose said, her voice flat. "Called me the Valiant Child and said I would die in battle."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The TARDIS jerked suddenly as she moved into the vortex, the engines quieter than usual. The Master couldn't think of what to say. He should leave it. He knew that. Antagonizing Rose always had a limit and pushing her past it never ended well, but it wasn't everyday someone met the devil and lived. "Right. Sounds exactly like the sort of prick who'd run around calling himself the devil."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose snorted. "Says the man who calls himself 'Master.' If I didn't know any better, I would have assumed it was a kink thing."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Master was offended, "What do you mean 'if you didn't know better?’" </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Time Lords don't do that sort of thing." Rose waved her hand in a vague gesture, "I bet the double meaning never even crossed your mind."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose was wrong, of course. The Master had spent a significant amount of time around humans. Not as much as the Doctor, but still. He was </span>
  <em>
    <span>very</span>
  </em>
  <span> well informed on their opinions of his chosen title. "It is true that mingling with lesser species was frowned upon, but it wasn't unheard of." He explained quickly. "One of the Doctor's pets ended up on Gallifrey where she engaged in a rather scandalous relationship with the Lady President and some lackey whose name I can't remember. Something that started with an 'N.’"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose arched an eyebrow. "Interesting. Any pon farr?" </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She was teasing him. He could tell and he hated it when she did that. Especially when he didn't understand what it was about. He had a witty reply about lesser human references posed on the tip of his tongue when Martha whirled into the console room like the Daleks themselves were after her. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Rose! Our stuff! From the seventies. It's all here." She bent over, huffing a bit. "Man, it's been six months and I'm already out of shape."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Our stuff?" Rose asked.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Master blinked, "The seventies?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Martha caught her breath and straightened back up, pulling a letter from her pocket. "I found this in one of your jackets. It's addressed to you."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose took the letter and carefully opened it, noting the '1' written on the envelope. Inside was a single sheet of paper. Her hands trembled as she unfolded it, a strange sense of dread building in her stomach. It was just a letter, there was no reason to be afraid of it. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Valiant,</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>I've taken the liberty of storing the items you and your companion purchased during your short stay in this time zone upon my TARDIS. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>This of course, is done on the assumption that some day in my personal future, or even beyond my timeline, the dear old girl passes on to you. Take care of her. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>- The Doctor</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The breath left her in a woosh. That's all it was. Thank god. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Master pulled the letter from her hands and read it over. "The seventies. Was that the one with the opera cape?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose nodded, going back to the console and pulling the dematerialization lever. "Well that explains how the clothes got there."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Martha watched Rose carefully, noting the tense set of her shoulders. "So where are we?" She asked just as the TARDIS landed, hoping to distract Rose from her thoughts. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose smiled ruefully. "Barcelona. The planet Barcelona, mind. Beaches, spas and nice little shops. Been wanting to come here for ages."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They were supposed to be taking Martha home when the TARDIS suddenly careened off course, heading to an unknown location. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Rose?" Martha shouted as she gripped the console, doing her best to stay upright as the TARDIS shook around them, "Where are we going?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I have absolutely no idea!" Rose shouted back, laughing with delight. The few days they'd spent getting pampered on Barcelona had done her a world of good, she felt lighter than he had in ages </span>
  <em>
    <span>and</span>
  </em>
  <span> her hair was softer than it'd been in months. All in all, she felt like she could take on the universe.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Master was less excited. "I hate this stupid ship." He growled, slapping a few buttons in an attempt to get them back on course. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose just laughed harder, letting the joy the TARDIS was feeling bubble through her. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Wherever we're going must be pretty brilliant.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose never really gave much thought to the idea of children, outside of not really wanting them. Kids were messy, loud and generally right terrors unless they were raised properly. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But Jenny wasn't a child. She'd stepped out of that machine fully grown with a wealth of knowledge on all the best ways to fight and kill. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>That was terrifying in it's own right, even after putting aside what Donna called ‘mum-shock’, but Rose knew that it was more than that. Jenny wasn’t human, or whatever species the humanoids on this planet were called. The Master had tried to explain once, how his connection or the Doctor’s were completely different from Rose’s, how Rose needed the TARDIS in ways that ‘proper’ Time Lords would be fine without. But Jenny, Jenny could </span>
  <em>
    <span>feel</span>
  </em>
  <span> the TARDIS. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose wasn't the only one of her kind anymore. She wasn't alone.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Was Jenny what the Face of Boe had been talking about?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>God, she hoped so. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose wished she had a camera when Donna told Jenny to call the Master 'Uncle Harry.' He grimaced like he'd swallowed the world's most bitter lemon. But his expression relaxed and the bitterness faded after he caught Jenny's overjoyed expression. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I know what an uncle is, obviously." Jenny explained to them as they continued on, racing to get to the Source before either army could. "I just never thought I'd have one. Or a proper mum."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Master softened even more and exchanged a look with Rose. "Well we're your family now." Rose said, because the Master couldn't. She knew how bad the Doctor's emotional baggage had been, she couldn’t imagine the pent up feelings lingering in the Master's head. "Family sticks together. You're stuck with us now."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jenny beamed, brighter than the sun. "Stuck with you? That's not so bad."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose stumbled, gaping as Jenny ran past her, how did she-? Didn’t matter right now. It was a question for a later date. Right now they had a war to stop and people to save. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>There were good days. There were perfectly beautiful days where everybody lives. Those are the days Rose strove for, the ones she worked so hard for. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Today was not one of those days. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She could feel time bending around Jenny, maintained awareness and watched in horror as she leapt in front of a bullet to save Rose. Every second dragged and grated on her time senses and by the look the Master gave Jenny, he could feel exactly what was happening as well. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose turned, reaching out, a scream trying to work itself free. She couldn’t lose Jenny, she /couldn’t/. The Master was moving too, both of them desperately trying to do this. But Rose felt the timelines lock into place as Jenny jerked and fell back against her.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"No no no no." Rose's knees gave out, but she held Jenny, tight as she could. She reached for the TARDIS, desperate for a way to save Jenny. But there's noting the ship could do with so much distance between them. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Distantly, she heard the Master yelling and Donna telling him to calm down, but all she could focus on was Jenny's blue eyes. "Mum." Jenny said roughly, "Did we do it?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose nodded. "Yeah, we did. Whole new planet out there, ready to be explored. There's so many of them out there, Jenny, millions probably. We could explore them all."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jenny gave a sort of weak smile, "What's it like, mum?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose swallowed, "It's beautiful. There's this planet called Woman Wept because from space, the land mass looks like a woman crying. And centuries ago, the entire planet froze in an instant." She kept talking, hoping to keep Jenny comfortable until she started to regenerate. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But as more time passed and Jenny didn’t show any of the signs, her breathing and pulse slowed, her eyes slipped shut. Rose prayed to every deity she could think of. But nothing ever happened, Jenny's hearts stopped beating and Rose broke down. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Gentle hands pulled her away. There was a request to keep her body that Rose couldn’t deny. She had nowhere to bury Jenny, and at least here, she'd get the proper ceremony she deserved. But Rose couldn’t bear to stay and see it. She pressed a kiss to Jenny's forehead, like her mum had done where she was little. Then she did what the Doctor taught her to do best: run.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She was halfway to the TARDIS when a hand slipped into hers and she looked up in startled shock to see the Master holding her hand. He hardly ever initiated skin contact, unless he had something to tell her telepathically. But this felt different. It felt like support. Like he was acknowledging their shared pain. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They got back to the TARDIS, who seemed bluer somehow, her hum seemed soft and heavy now, like she was grieving too. It reminded Rose of her first few days onboard, back when the Doctor had worn leather and been so, so angry with the Universe for the choices he’d been forced to make.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She'd never thought of the dim lighting in the console room as bleak before, but it felt that way now; dark, heavy, and oppressive. But she probably wouldn't be able to handle anything brighter. Cheer seemed like a distant memory. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose settled on the jumpseat, sagging like a marionette with cut strings. The Master leaned against the console, looking uncomfortable. They couldn't leave yet. Not until Martha and Donna got back. But Rose still needed to run. The itch to get away from her pain burned her skin. Was this how the Doctor always felt?</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Valiant." The Master called, drawing Rose out of her thoughts. She looked up at him, ready to tell him off for calling her that. It wasn’t her name. She’d only ever called herself that as a joke and the Master’s insistence that she needed a title instead of a name was starting to wear on her. Rose didn’t want some fancy title. She just wanted to be Rose Tyler. He shifted slightly under her gaze, like he was uncomfortable. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jenny’s face flashed in her mind’s eye, so bright and eager for their adventure. ‘Love the running’ she’d said and Rose had laughed. "Did you kill him?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"No. But I wanted to. Donna stopped me." The Master looked conflicted, more angry with himself than anything else. Rose wondered if he was angry that he’d let Donna stop him.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose didn’t respond so they sat there in silence, wondering if that had been the right thing. Sometimes she wasn’t sure any more. Taking a life was wrong, but when it was someone like Cobb? Someone responsible for thousands of deaths? Someone who allowed more and more young people to be created, only for them to die fighting in a pointless war because of their own bigotry? The Doctor would be disappointed in her for thinking like this so she pushed the train of thought away, keeping her mind painfully blank until Donna and Martha returned, quietly setting the proper coordinates to get Martha home. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jenny sat up much too quickly when she woke up, making herself dizzy. She was alone. But she hadn't been alone... had her mum left her? </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She got up and wandered the room, marveling at the rather nice bed she'd been put on. Where had everyone gone?</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Martha's exit from the TARDIS was subdued, no room for excitement with the Master and Rose clinging to the console like it was their only lifeline. Donna was quiet too and Martha wished she could have known Jenny a bit longer, if only to understand why her death had this large of an effect. She gave Rose a quick hug and left the TARDIS, watching the ship dematerialize behind her and wondering if she’d made a mistake in leaving them alone.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Let's hit the random button." Donna said finally, breaking the oppressive silence that Martha’s exit had left behind.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose glared at the time rotor. "Don't know if I should. Last time I let her choose... well, you saw the results of that."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Fine. Let's go to the 1920's then. Somewhere on Earth." Donna tried, grasping for something to distract Rose. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose smiled weakly, "You just want to dress up."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Donna laughed. "More like I want to see the sort of idiot suit you can get Harry into." She glanced over at the Master, relishing his obvious frustration with her calling him Harry. "Something with pinstripes?" She suggested, nearly cackling with the mental image of how silly he'd look but it's completely the wrong thing to say, Rose's small smile vanished like it'd never been there at all. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"No pinstripes. But we can do the 1920's. I'll have the TARDIS look for something fun to do." She stared at the monitor, fiddling with one of the dials that controlled the display. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Donna cursed her own stupidity and followed after the Master to the wardrobe room. That silence was back, thick and heaving in the air, drying up all the words in her throat. Donna stared unblinking at the period appropriate dresses, not seeing them, wondering what she could do to fix this.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Charley looked down at the garden party and sighed with frustration.  It wasn't that she wanted to be there with the adults; they were generally overly formal and didn't know how to have any fun but Agatha Christie was there. Charley had read all of her books and she had so many questions. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>But no, her aunt and mother had exiled her to the library so she wouldn't 'badger Mrs. Christie with questions'. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>She could hear footsteps approaching the library door so she pulled the curtains around her. It wouldn't do to get told off for moping, which had happened on more than one occasion. Honestly, they wouldn't even let her outside and it was such a beautiful day. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Someone came into the library, rustling papers and muttering to himself as he went. Charley held stock still, praying that whoever it was wouldn't try to open the curtains and find her. Ever since she'd snuck into one of her father's business meetings, Mother had been rather clear about what would happen the next time she got caught 'snooping' (Charley hadn't been caught since.)</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I was right. Kept secret all these years. It's unbelievable." That sounded like Professor Peach. He was nice enough, as adults went. He wouldn't rat her out if she revealed herself. Or well, Charley didn't think he would. But he sounded funny, nervous. Which was never a good sign with adults so Charley chose to stay hidden. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Oh, it's you. I was just doing a little research. I say, what are you doing with that lead piping?" The professor said and Charley clapped a hand over her mouth to keep in a squeak as a loud buzzing filled the room. How on earth was he doing that? And lead piping? What exactly was going on? Whatever was buzzing was creating a slight breeze, tugging on her curtain a bit</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The professor cried out, "But that's impossible. Oh, no!" Before there was a rather wet sounding thump followed by what she could only assume was his body falling to the floor. The buzzing faded but Charley stayed perfectly still, not even daring to breath. Heavy footsteps crossed the room, going over to the other window and yanking the curtains open. Charley nearly shrieked, but just managed to bite it back.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The footsteps moved away and the door to the library opened and closed again. Charley silently counted to three hundred, watching the people down on the lawn before risking stepping out from behind the curtain. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Professor Peach was sprawled on the floor, not breathing. "Professor?" Charley asked, afraid to touch him. She nudged his leg with her foot, but he really was dead. "Oh my lord." She took a deep breath, trying to stay calm but there was a scream building inside her, demanding to be let out. She swallowed it down and ran from the library, going as fast as she could to get her mother. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"How do we know the girl didn't do it?" The Master offered, plopping into the chair behind the desk. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose rolled her eyes, "You can't be serious. You think that twelve year old girl was strong enough to bludgeon a grown man over the head with a bloody lead pipe?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Master shrugged, "She could have snuck up on him."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Agatha Christie looked completely aghast. "You aren't joking, are you? How completely horrible."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Don't listen to him." Rose insisted. "He's always seeing the worst in people. Still though, we need to figure this out before more people get killed."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Rose." The Master said in a rather grave voice.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Oh shut up. I'm not listening to you prattle on about-"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"No, Rose. Seriously. I've been poisoned." He had already started to go pale and Rose's eyebrows raced to her hairline. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"It's arsenic." Agatha Christie confirmed. "There's nothing we can do, I'm sorry."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose watched the Master carefully as a determined glint came into his eye. "That'd be true if I were human. Come on. To the kitchen."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"What are you going to do? You've been bloody poisoned, you plonker!" Donna shouted after him as he raced down the stairs. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Detox!" He shouted back. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The three women exchanged a look and raced after him. "Donna help him if he needs it." Rose said, going around the kitchen asking about their latest round of drinks and trying to keep everyone else generally calm amidst the Master and Donna's shouting. She heard him say something about "too salty" but that was all she caught before they moved on and she finally found the culprit: a terrified kitchen girl who'd made the drinks, but had no clue where the arsenic had come from. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Right then." Rose sighed and turned around just in time to see Donna plant one on the Master. He exhaled a nasty looking black smoke and wiped the back of his mouth before adjusting his suit. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Never do that again." He snarled at Donna, though his cheeks seemed slightly pink to Rose.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"You said you needed a shock." Donna snapped back, crossing her arms over her chest. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"And your first thought was to </span>
  <em>
    <span>kiss</span>
  </em>
  <span> me? Honestly, I'll never understand humans." </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The whole house was subdued when the detectives arrived back at the house from the chase Mrs. Christie had led the giant wasp on. Charley still watched from her window and sneaked downstairs to meet them. The man took Mrs. Christie into a strange blue box and Charley couldn’t resist asking, "She's going to be alright, isn't she?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The blonde woman startled but she smiled when she spotted Charley. "'Course she will. We're just going to give her some medicine and take her where she needs to be."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"In </span>
  <em>
    <span>there</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" Charley asked skeptically. "How do all of you fit?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>A sort of weird look crossed the woman's face, like someone called her name and she was having a conversation where no words were actually said. "Do you want to see?" She finally asked. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Charley nodded, eagerly creeping closer to the box while the woman held the door open. She looked inside and stumbled back from surprise. "It's bigger on the inside!" She cried peering around the sides of the box, trying to figure out how it all fit. She looked back inside, this time noticing how warm and welcoming the room felt with the cream colored walls and soft lighting. There was a sort of humming underneath the sounds of the other two detectives moving across the grating that sounded familiar even though Charley knew she'd never heard it before. "Is this a spaceship? Are you from outer space?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"It is indeed. She's called the TARDIS. Do you think you can keep her a secret?" The woman asked and Charley nodded, stepping away from the box. "Good luck, Charlotte Pollard." The woman said with a wave. "And remember: Lenin's pajamas were mauve, not striped."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Charley has no idea what that meant, but the woman had said it like it was rather important so she filed it away to make sure she remembered. The door to the box closed and the most fantastical noise rang out through the night, a sort of grinding whoosh that felt safe, felt like home. The box faded from view and Charley gaped at the spot it once stood until her nose went a bit numb in the night air before tromping back inside. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Was that wise?" The Master asked as Rose slowly moved them through the vortex. "You're giving her hints to her own future."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Rose closed her eyes and felt the warmth of the TARDIS surround her. "Charley's special," they said together, and Rose could feel the weight of the words. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>***</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It's only seven years later after a marvelous adventure on an airship that Charley really remembered what that woman said to her so many years ago. Because here she stood in front of a very familiar blue box after the adventure of a lifetime. "Hello." She said softly, pressing a hand to the doors while the Doctor fiddled with holding Ramsey still. "I don't suppose you remember me, do you?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The wood warmed ever so slightly under her hand and she heard that hum again just as the doors popped open. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>For those of you who don't know who Charley/Charlotte Pollard is; she's one of the eighth Doctor's companions from the Big Finish audios and I adore her to bits. She was born in 1914 and meets the Doctor in 1933 so it was incredibly easy to shove her in her for my own wish fulfillment. I hope you guys like her!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Being functionally dead isn't so bad, River supposed one day while writing her post mortem autobiography. She had free reign in the archives of the Library to do anything she liked and being a data ghost meant she wasn’t technically dead, even if everyone treated her like she was. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But her drinks were always prepared to perfection, the beach house that CAL had provided for her had wonderful views, and if she ever got bored she could usually dig through her memories for an old adventure to relive. She'd pointedly avoided the day that she died for years but in recent days she'd been reliving it, over and over, trying to understand Rose Tyler. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She'd heard stories, of course. Nearly everyone who knew the Doctor had because the TARDIS refused to allow Rose to be forgotten, much as the Doctor would like her to be. But something in River's memories bothered her. The Master consistently called Rose 'the Valiant' which was a name belonging to a different person, so far as River knew. Unless they were somehow the same. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The sensors rang out and River stretched, reaching out metaphorical fingers across her keyboard, flipping through the cameras to find whoever had come to the Library. It wasn’t the Doctor or the Valiant, they never came to visit; it wasn’t some hapless archeologist who needed scaring off; it was a TARDIS. Not the TARDIS that River practically grew up on, not the one she still dreamed about sometimes, her mind constantly searching for the soothing hum. No, this was a different TARDIS, one with a functioning chameleon circuit, by the look of things. Which could only mean two people.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Two women exited the TARDIS, locking the door tight behind them  and heading to the room that had been specially set up for River's holographic body. "You're late." River said when the women entered, not bothering with formal greetings. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The woman with the umbrella snorts. "We're Time Ladies. We're never late." The ginger unpacked a small picnic on the floor and poured herself a cup of tea. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh sit down Missy. We're here for a visit. Not to be obnoxious, though I'm still not sure you've learned the difference." Donna snarked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>River manipulated her hologram onto the floor so she was on the same level but Missy sat rather primly in the lone chair, the picture of Victorian elegance, if you could ignore the mad glint in her eyes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It's been a while, on my end. There's never any telling how long it's been for you two. But it gets old being here all the time. And no one else ever comes by..." River said softly. "Run into the Doctor or Val lately?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"This isn't your end, poppet." Missy told her, blatantly avoiding her question, which was code for yes. She had seen them recently, but she wouldn’t talk about it, like always. "We've been waiting for approval, but we've finally gotten it. We can get you a new body. Fresh set of regenerations and everything."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You're joking." River gaped. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Donna finally cracked a smile. "No, we're not. You have no idea the amount of favors I had to call in. But once Val mentioned something about Rassilon being a genocidal maniac, you being the only other TARDIS sister in existence, and something about not telling the average citizen the full extent of what Rassilon had done well... things started moving along."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Missy's face soured considerably, her dislike of Val well known amongst nearly everyone she talked to and River knew why, but never understood. She had a theory for a while now, one slowly taking root in her mind and refusing to let go. It would infuriate Missy to no end, but she couldn’t resist saying, "I think Val might be Rose."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Missy's face darkened even further. "Val is </span>
  <em>
    <span>nothing</span>
  </em>
  <span> like Rose. You didn't know Rose like we did. Meeting her for ten minutes during some botched expedition that got you basically killed doesn't mean much." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"But I know Val. She's my godmother, remember? And the only other person I've met that is, well, was, like me. And you, past you, kept referring to Rose as the Valiant and that's Val's full title. They're both TARDIS sisters, have incredibly strong bonds with the Doctor's TARDIS, and the Doctor found Val in a sort of parallel world-" River tried, listing her points but Missy simply stood up and left, pulling what looked like a blaster out of her pocket. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Donna winced, watching Missy go, their rivalry and mutual dislike had evolved over years and became something closer to a sibling rivalry than actual hatred. "It's been hard on her. She went hopping, looking for whatever universe the Doctor left them in, but without the coordinates we can't find her. We don't even know if she's still alive and there's always the risk of finding her after she's dead. You didn't get to see how close they were, River, not really. They did this thing sometimes, where they'd move together subconsciously, like they just *knew* exactly what the other was going to do. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Martha and I talked about it once and apparently they spent nearly a year in each other's heads helping reconstruct their respective personalities, that sort of thing leaves traces. Rose understood her, understood behind all the fronts and masks. It's hard to lose someone you're close to like that. She still hasn't forgiven the Doctor, no matter how many jokes she makes."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But she was sure that Val was Rose. Val gave her her screwdriver, the one that Rose had taken one look at and nearly had a conniption over. Val had told River to say 'Bad Wolf' if she ever met a version of the Master traveling with Rose. Everything lined up nearly perfectly and the only other explanation River could come up with was it being the TARDIS telling Val what to do to make sure the timelines stayed in the right order </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Several loud explosions rocked the building before Missy came back, a single lock of hair spilling out of her updo. River looked at her with newfound sympathy. She could understand now, why losing that would be so painful, why Missy never really allowed herself to hope.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Anyways!" Missy cut in, back to her cheerful, if slightly more manic, self. "If you could just pop yourself into a thumb drive, we can get this all over with."</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>An early update in honor of the anniversary of Doctor who!</p><p>And we're hopping right into Midnight</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>"Sapphire waterfalls, Donna!" Rose said excitedly, "Come on, you can't tell me that you don't want to see that." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Donna snorted, "I don't want to be stuck with his royal Master-I-ness and a random assortment of aliens for eight hours. Besides, there's a Tratinian mud bath/massage combo in two hours with my name on it. Not missing that."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose sighed, "Fair enough. You'll have to tell me how that is. I could do with a massage."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Blondie, if you </span>
  <em>
    <span>don't</span>
  </em>
  <span> get a massage while we're here, I'll tie you to the table myself."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose laughed, "Alright. I'll see you in eight hours. Don't get into any trouble." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Skye can you hear me?" Rose asked only to have her question repeated back. The Master looked around the cramped tour bus, trying to figure out what had happened. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You could check her thoughts." He suggested, "See if she's had some sort of mental break."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That's assault!" The male half of the married couple snapped, his face going pink with rage. He'd look like an Alteanian carrot soon if he didn't calm down. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Is it assault if a doctor treats a patient who's passed out and cannot consent?" The Master snapped. "It's not. Because humans have laws about that sort of thing. Just like there's laws about telepathic contact and we'd be well within the right of care to check Skye's mind to see what's going on."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What do you mean 'humans'?" The professor asked, his eyes narrowing. "You talk as if you're not one of us."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"He's not!" The teenager chimed in. "I hear them talking earlier. She called him a Time Lord."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Rose now would be a good time for those people skills of yours." The Master turned to get her attention, only to find her staring straight ahead and repeating what he'd said. Skye blinked up at him like she was waking up from a dream. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm free. It left me." She said happily and the Master glowered at her, pushing her aside so he could get to Rose. Skye made a rather offended noise as did several other passengers but all he could focus on was Rose's blank stare. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Come on, Rose. Don't leave me alone with these idiots." He searched her face for the slightest sign on recognition but other than the terror in her eyes, there was nothing. "Right. The easy way then." He put two fingers on her temple and slipped into her mind. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master was incredibly familiar with Rose's mind. He'd helped her piece it back together after his disaster of a regeneration and since she was the only other Time Lord (more or less) in this universe, he'd had to teach her how to converse telepathically. Needless to say he was incredibly confused to find </span>
  <em>
    <span>nothing</span>
  </em>
  <span>. IIt was like she was dead. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His grip on her temples reflexively tightened. He absolutely would not allow it. Rose was not allowed to up and die on him and leave him with just </span>
  <em>
    <span>Donna</span>
  </em>
  <span> for company. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"We should throw her out." Someone said and the Master snapped back into himself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Over my dead body." He snarled, moving Rose's body into a corner and planting himself in front of her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Throw them both out, then." The married man said again and the Master immediately nicknamed him Chet. He'd never met a good Chet and considering he hadn't taken the time to learn names... well, it was just easier this way. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"We can't just throw people out." The hostess said and the Master resolved to get her her name, she seemed reasonable. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well then what are we supposed to do? Wait for that </span>
  <em>
    <span>thing</span>
  </em>
  <span>," Chet gestured to Rose, "to take us over and kill us?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master groaned at their stupidity. He'd never understand why the Doctor liked humans so much. Rose was good, though. And Donna, but he'd never admit to that. "It's not going to kill you because it's smart. Smarter than all of you. It obviously did something to kill the drivers. What's keeping it from killing us right now? Nothing. Besides the fact that it needs something. So what does it need?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He looked at them, expecting responses  and glared at them when he didn't get them. "Come on, you're all intelligent enough! It's possessing people. So it's obviously looking for a host. It's learning, and it wants us scared and fighting because then it can get what it wants, which, if I know my fair share about evil entities that possess humans and I do, it wants to get back to the resort."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They continued to stare at him blankly, seeming to be lost in the thread of his logic. He turned to Skye. "You! You were possessed. What do you remember? What did it want?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I-"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Look! There's a man on the TV." The younger woman, not Chet's wife said. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A man in a brown, pinstripped suit had appeared on the TV and was mouthing something at them, his gaze locked on the Master. It looked like he was saying 'Rose.' </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Mickey, I need you to get me there, now!" The Doctor shouted, running the start up protocol for the cannon. The video feed had cut out but he'd seen Rose, for the first time in years and she was in trouble. "Now, Mickey!"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm inputting the coordinates. Get into jump position." Mickey shouted back, surprisingly calm. He looked up to check that the Doctor was in position. "Keep her safe, boss."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor nodded and slammed his hand onto the button, already running through what he'd need to say on the other side. Crowd control. He'd have to pass himself off as help. Hopefully whoever the man protecting Rose would be willing to work with him. Then he’d need to get everyone else calm and figure out what exactly was going on. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He landed on a dark street and looked around, trying to get his bearings. They must have missed the bus somehow. That was an issue but still manageable, there was a crowd gathered at one end of the street so he headed that way, hoping it was right.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Excuse me," he said to get a redheaded woman's attention. "What's going on?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"They just pulled a body out from under the river." The woman said, not looking at him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor looked at her carefully, she seemed familiar, but he was sure he'd never met her before. None of this was right, the canon must have thrown him off track but he couldn't resist asking, "Did they mention a name?"</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The woman looked at him and the Doctor was startled to see she was crying, "Rose. They said Rose Tyler."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The world stopped turning and he could feel the rush of blood in his ears. That was absolutely not possible. She couldn’t be- she couldn’t. He refused to believe it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>UNIT was waiting for him. He didn’t even have to ask; they automatically took him to Rose. And it was then that all his worst fears were confirmed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was too late. Rose was gone.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>He wasn’t entirely sure how Jack found him, had absolutely no bloody clue how Jack even got to 21st century London, but he was really starting to wish Jack would, to put it politely, </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck off</span>
  </em>
  <span>. The Doctor had been working on getting absolutely shitfaced for the last two hours because it was easier than having to process the fact that Rose was- He couldn’t even bear to think about it. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jackie was going to kill him, he realized suddenly and downed the rest of his drink in a vain attempt to drown out the thought. Mickey'd be next in line. He could see the agony on their faces already in horrifically perfect detail. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Doc!" Jack shouted, kicking the Doctor under the table. "You've got to snap out of it. If you're going to drink yourself stupid in a futile attempt to escape your problems, then you have to actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>forget your problems</span>
  </em>
  <span>."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Doctor glared at Jack, already wishing he had another drink. There was hypervodka and Corrillian brandy on the TARDIS but his poor ship was still trapped in the bowels of H.C. Clements and it would probably take at least a few days to drain the water that had flooded from the Thames before he'd be able to get back to her. Until then, he had nowhere to go. UNIT could probably put him up somewhere if he asked. Maybe Jackie's old flat, if it hadn't been too long since Canary Wharf. He was still a bit fuzzy on the timelines here; looking at them felt like trying to see through fabric, there were bright spots when time properly showed through, but everything else was too soft and muffled to be read clearly. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"What do you want, Jack?" He finally grumbled, leaning back in his seat until his head hit the wall. The pub he'd picked, and subsequently been found in by Jack, was one of those dingey hole in the wall places that seldom got new patrons, just the same miserable crowd, day after day, looking for some relief and escape from the mundanity of their lives. It was the sort of place that made the Doctor's skin crawl. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I want to know what happened. Last thing I knew, you and Rose both died at Canary Wharf. Next thing I know, you're here and Rose is-"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Don't say it!" The Doctor snapped, cutting Jack off. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jack swallowed the words down and tried a new angle, "Okay. But what happened? Because I'm very confused."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Doctor played with his glass, balancing it on its edge. "What do they teach you about parallel worlds in time agent school?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Not much," Jack admitted. "We know they exist, but as far as the agency is concerned, they're inaccessible and therefore, a nonissue."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I've been in one for the last two years."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jack's jaw dropped, "I knew it! It looked like you'd been sucked into the Void. But I knew you weren't."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Doctor smiled but it was empty. "Anyway, I've been trying to get back. And here I am."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"And Rose is gone."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The Doctor nodded stiffly, all pretense of a smile gone. "Yeah. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>*** </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Too many drinks later, Jack managed to talk the Doctor into going to a hotel, "Just for sleeping, Harkness." He'd mumbled as he'd swayed on his feet. "'M not- I don't do </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span>."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I know you don't, Doc. But I don't have a place to stay nearby so hotel it is, so long as you promise not to hog the covers." The Doctor let out a sharp laugh at that and ended up leaning on Jack a bit more.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The hotel was posh, but not so posh that they'd turn their noses up at two drunks. Despite his teasing, Jack got a room with two beds, if only to avoid hearing the Doctor complain about having to share a bed in the morning, though he'd be willing to bet that this Doctor was in even bigger need of a cuddle than Jack's first one. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>He sat the Doctor down on one of the beds and pulled his shoes off before slipping off his jacket and tie. "Don't do that, not here for that." The Doctor tried grabbing Jack's hands to stop him but his grip was weak and demonstrated just how drunk and out of it he was. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I'm not, promise. Just trying to get you comfy so you can sleep." Jack assured him. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It seemed to put the Doctor at ease because he immediately slumped over and started snoring. "Well that was easy." </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Something in the Doctor's pocket was ringing so Jack fished around until he found the culprit: a small cell phone. "Hello?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jack can feel the stunned silence radiating across the line. "Jack?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Mickey?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Is the Doctor with you?" Mickey asked urgently. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"He's currently sleeping off one hell of a bender, why?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Mickey hesitated, "How much do you know?"</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jack tried not to react as he slowly listed facts, "You, Rose's Mum and the Doctor have all been trapped in a parallel universe for two years."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Mickey sighed in relief. "Okay, good. When the Doctor wakes up, tell him you’re in some sort of bubble. Like a weird little pocket timeline. It looks like someone's been mucking about with the timelines and the Doctor's stuck there until he figures out what went wrong. We can't pull him back."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Gotcha." Jack wrote it down, making sure he'd gotten everything because he was sober enough to know that he was too drunk to remember this in the morning. "Take care, Mickey Mouse."</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"See ya, Captain Cheesecake. Good luck." </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They ended the call and only then did Jack realize that he hadn't told Mickey about Rose like he'd planned to. But was there any point? Jack wondered as he kicked off his shoes and laid out on his bed. Rose probably wasn't dead in the real timeline.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jack's eyes shot open and he bolted upright. "Oh my god!" He rolled out of bed and started shaking the Doctor. "Wake up! Wake up, Doc, you've got to hear this!"</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter 10</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>They opened the glass doors and stepped out onto the balcony, and the Doctor beamed. This was absolutely brilliant. How on Earth, well, not on Earth, he supposed, had whoever had done this managed?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"We've got air. How does that work?" The doctor in training that had come with him asked, he thought her name was Martha. He liked her, she seemed to ask the right questions which had been hard to find at UNIT these days. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Just be glad it does." The Doctor said, picking up a nice sized rock. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I've got a party tonight. It's my brother's twenty-first. My mother's going to be really, really-" Martha cut off suddenly and the Doctor tried to process what she'd been talking about. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You okay?" He asked, suddenly picking up on how nervous she was. He couldn’t handle someone freaking out on him right now. As interesting as all this was, he really didn’t have the time to be bothering with petty invasions.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah." She said shakily. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Sure?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah." More firmly this time, but there was still a bit of a quaver in her voice. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Want to go back in?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No way. I mean, we could die any minute, but all the same, it's beautiful." Martha's eyes were bright and the Doctor was painfully reminded of Rose. How many deadly situations had they been in where she'd still looked on in wonder? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Do you think?" The Doctor asked, doing his best to talk around the lump in his throat. She wasn’t dead. He reminded himself. This was just a fractured timeline he had to repair. Basic stuff. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"How many people want to go to the moon? And here we are." The wonder in her voice finally pulled the Doctor from his thoughts. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Standing in the Earthlight. Always loved the moon." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What do you think happened?" Martha asked, now watching him with a careful expression as he tested the weight of the rock in his hand </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What do you think?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Extraterrestrial. It's got to be. I don't know, a few years ago that would have sounded mad, but these days? That spaceship flying into Big Ben, Christmas, those Cybermen things. I had a cousin. Adeola. She worked at Canary Wharf. She never came home."  Ah. The lump was back again. He'd forgotten how close this timeline was to Canary Wharf and now all he could see was Rose's distraught face as he fell towards the void. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He shut the thought down, temporarily walling off the memories so they couldn't bother him until this was over. There was always time to break down later. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And it was there, standing in the Earthlight, that the Doctor came up with a plan. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*** </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha tagged along after him when UNIT showed up to escort him back to headquarters. They didn’t like him wandering off and finding alien threats on his own and he got a lengthy lecture out of it but this lot was so different from the UNIT that he remembered he couldn’t help but wonder where things went a bit funny. Surely Alistair wouldn't have put up with this.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha followed him around UNIT HQ, completely enthralled with the thrill of it all, until he remembered to call a car to take her home. If it were any other time, the Doctor might have asked her along for a trip or two. She'd proved herself more than resourceful. But the TARDIS hadn’t been operational since they'd pulled her out from under the Thames so it's not like he had much to offer. And even more pressing was the whole issue of fixing this whole messed up timeline and getting back to a functional version of his TARDIS so he could stop the bloody stars from going out. </span>
  <em>
    <span>And get Rose back</span>
  </em>
  <span>, his traitorous heart reminded him, but he wasn’t supposed to think about her, couldn’t bear thinking about her. Because if he thought about her, he’d remember that she was gone and that it was all his fault. So he locked all that away, tied up in the nice little bow of hope that she’d be completely fine when he reset the timeline. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Blimey he'd be stressed if he weren't a Time Lord. (He was still completely stressed) </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Much to his shock, Martha showed up bright-eyed the next day, claiming to have been hired on as his assistant. He rolled with it, not able to muster the energy to be angry, there was too much other stuff to focus on. And Marth proved to be an excellent set of steady hands while he tried to repair the TARDIS console. Problem was, half of the repairs he'd made over the various centuries seem to have been swapped around to the point where he didn’t know where anything was anymore and the TARDIS herself was being unusually quiet since they'd fished her out from under the Thames. "What did you let Rose do to you?" He grumbled to his ship and received a zap to the fingers for his effort. He’d normally be angry with her, but he was so relieved with getting </span>
  <em>
    <span>any</span>
  </em>
  <span> response out of her that he grinned even as he examined his finger to make sure the TARDIS hadn’t shocked him too much.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha laughed and took over holding the temporal couplings in place right after he pulled his hands away,  "Who's Rose? You talk to the TARDIS about her often." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor froze like a deer in headlights. "She travelled with me. And we were together." He said simply, unable to manage anymore than that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha seemed to understand because she didn’t ask again, which he was thankful for. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, Donna. I am so sorry." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Donna turned around to look at the Doctor. "What are you on about now? We just saved the day. You should be happy." But the Doctor wasn't happy. He was just staring at her with that miserable look he got whenever he thought too hard. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I've spent all these months looking for what threw this timeline off course. And it's been you the whole time." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't understand." Donna said, suddenly feeling very small </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor shook his head. "Of course you don't. There's no possible way that you could. I can show you. We need to get back to UNIT." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm not going bloody anywhere with you until you explain. I've spent the past three months with you thinking that I meant something, that together you and I were actually making a difference and now you're telling me that I'm what's been causing all this?" Donna demanded, finding her courage again. "That's what you said, wasn't it? Back with the Adipose. That there was something affecting time and making it go wonky. And that's me?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Donna, it's not that simple-" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"The hell it isn't!" Donna roared, ready to slap him. "So how are you going to do it then? You've got to get rid of me somehow to fix the timeline. I'm surprised you didn't off me the second you realized it." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Donna!" The Doctor snapped, startling her enough to make her stop. "This whole timeline shouldn't exist. Somewhere out there is a different Donna Noble who made one choice different from you and is living a completely different life. Probably a better life, considering everything I know about that timeline." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"How could you possibly know?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"There's this girl. She's got blonde hair and brown eyes. Her tongue catches in her teeth when she smiles. And I'm willing to bet you dream about her. I bet you've been dreaming about her ever since H.C. Clements blew up." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Donna froze and nodded. "Oh my god she's Rose. Your Rose. The one you can never bloody shut up about." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor's expression was tight. "Yes." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Then how do we fix this?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You're going to have to die." </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Chapter 11</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Donna jolted upright, gasping for air as the time beetle fell off her back. Rose was by her side in an instant. "Donna, thank god. We've been trying to get that bloody thing off you for hours. The Master is still off giving that fortune teller hell. Are you okay?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Donna vaguely registered the distant sound of the Master shouting and was surprised by how comforting it was, even after all their petty fights and squabbles, it seemed he did care . She finally managed to catch her breath. "I was in this alternate timeline.” She said, trying to piece the broken fragments of memory together. “And you were bloody dead!" She recalled with horor. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose blinked and faltered for just a moment before regaining her stride. "'S alright, Donna. Now that the beetle is dead, the timeline never existed." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No but there was this man…” the skinny bloke. What was his name? She couldn’t remember and her head was aching so she let that go. But he’d had a message, “He said he knew you. He gave a message but I can't-" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Donna, really, it's fine. Nothing from that timeline has any bearing on now. At least, that's what the Master said, and you know how he is." Rose kept talking, trying to reassure her but Donna wasn't paying attention. The message had been important.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Bad Wolf." Donna finally remembered. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose turned white as a sheet, "What did you say?" Rose asked in a quavering whisper. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That man I met. He told me to tell you 'Bad Wolf.'" Donna clarified. She hadn’t expected Rose to react like this. It didn’t make sense. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose bolted from the tent, racing out onto the street. It couldn't be- but every sign in the marketplace, they said it too. "Harry!" Rose shouted, knowing that would get the Master's attention faster than anything else. "TARDIS, now!" Rose went back into the tent, "Donna we need to go." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Donna followed after Rose as they raced back to the TARDIS with the Master trailing behind them. Rose froze in front of the doors, gaping at the sign on the door that also said Bad Wolf. "What does it mean, Rose?" Donna asked while Rose fumbled with her key to get inside. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't know. The last time- the last time it was the end of the universe and I nearly got both me and the Doctor killed." The doors swung open and Rose rushed everyone in. "Right okay. Earth first. Got to make sure Earth is okay." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She moved around the console faster than Donna had ever seen her go, humming as she went. The Master stayed back, leaning against the railing with Donna. "Nice to see you're safe and sound." He said with biting politeness. Ah. So they were still pretending to hate each other. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Were you worried about me, Harry?" Donna taunted back. "Rose said you were positively distraught." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master gasped, looking thoroughly offended and turned to Rose to demand that she weigh in but Rose was already out the TARDIS doors, standing on some grass. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Everything's fine." She said more to herself that the others as she took it in. "How is everything fine? Excuse me," she called to a bewildered looking milkman. "What day is it?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Saturday." He returned and Rose turned to the Master and Donna. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Okay, Saturday. Saturdays are good. It would be better if it were a Sunday. Nothing ever happens on Sundays." She paced for a moment before stepping back into the TARDIS with Donna trailing behind her. The Master paused to look around, something </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> off. He could feel it. But it was nothing for Rose to be in such a tizzy about- </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The ground beneath his feet jolted and the Master lost his balance. He looked up at the now dark sky and turned back to where the TARDIS was- had been. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well fuck."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master flailed for a moment not knowing what to do. The sky was dark and there were other planets in the sky. Which meant someone had moved Earth. Right okay. Plan time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was effectively stranded on 21st century Earth with limited tech resources. He could rob a store? Oh, but Rose would probably get mad at him for that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>OH! He could go to Torchwood. Jack would have the tech he needed. He rummaged through his pockets, slapping together bits of tech until he had a functioning teleport. This was going to be a rough ride. </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Chapter 12</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Rose gaped out at the empty space where the Earth should be, her mind spinning as it tried to piece together something, anything to explain what's happened. Donna was shouting but Rose tuned it out, going to the console to run a scan. The TARDIS hummed mournfully in her head, as if dreading what to come. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What's going on, old girl?" Rose asked and received no reply. Right. She had to figure this out on her own then. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Rose, please!" Donna pleaded, finally breaking through the fog that Rose had settled into. "What's going on?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Someone's taken the Earth." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Okay but what's that bloke I met got to do with it? And all the Bad Wolf stuff?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I think you met the Doctor. I always figured he'd find a way back, as much as he said it was impossible." Rose started running another scan, desperately to find some trace of where the Earth had gone. "Bad Wolf is a bit more complicated. Bad Wolf is, me? More or less. Back, ages ago, the Doctor sent me away to keep me safe and I didn't like that so I looked into the heart of the TARDIS. Together, she and I became Bad Wolf and we saved the Doctor. That's part of the reason I'm not human anymore. You can't look into time and space like that without it changing you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So why is it popping up now? Why did the Doctor ask me to tell you?" Donna asked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I think it's a clue, maybe. Something about everything that's been happening. Or maybe he's just trying to tell me that whatever is going on is End-of-the-Universe big." Rose theorized. "Right. I've got nothing, which means we need outside help." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Outside help?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Outside help." Rose input new coordinates and pulled the dematerialization lever. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*** </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jack gaped at the heap of Time Lord that had just popped into existence on the floor of the hub. "Harry? What the hell are you doing here?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"In case you hadn't noticed, Harkness, Earth's been moved." The Master panted, winded from the awful teleport. "I came here because you have tech. Now take me to wherever you keep all the scrap stuff. I need to find a way to get ahold of Rose." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Nothing's working, we've tried all the regular channels." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master rolled his eyes. "I know. But I'm a Time Lord and as soon as I can get my hands on some decent tech, I can probably make you a whole new way. Besides, it makes sense for whoever's kidnapped Earth to make it hard for anyone to call for help." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*** </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah, I've tried calling her, but I can't get through. But she's still with Rose, I know that much, and the last time she phoned, it was from a planet called Midnight, made of diamonds." Wilf explained after the Doctor had managed to convince him to get back inside. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What the hell are you two on about?" Sylvia snapped and the Doctor made sure to keep a wide berth, he'd already been slapped once by Jackie and he was in no mood to repeat the experience. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Willf gave Sylvia an exasperated look and the Doctor had to hold back laughter; he'd watched this exact argument play out in the false timeline. "Look, she's out there, sweetheart. Your daughter. She's travelling the stars with Rose. She always has been." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Don't be ridiculous." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, come on, open your eyes." Wilf gestured to the front door. "Look at the sky. Look at, look at the Daleks. You can't start denying things now." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Right, you lot are more or less my last hope. I've got no other way to contact Rose aside from Donna. So unless you've got-" the Doctor cut off and stared blankly at the laptop as a static-ridden picture came into view on the nearby laptop. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Can anyone hear me? The Subwave Network is open. You should be able to hear my voice. Is there anyone there?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh," the Doctor breathed. "I know that voice."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Can anyone hear me? This message is of the utmost importance. We haven't much time. Can anyone hear me? </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The image resolved into color and the Doctor gaped at Harriet Jones, "How the hell are you doing that?" He asked no one in particular. He sat down at the computer and looked it over, trying to find a way to get through. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Captain Jack Harkness, shame on you. Now stand to attention, sir." Harriet said and the Doctor blinked at the screen, where was Jack? Was he somehow on earth? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor could hear Jack faintly in the background of Harriet's feed but he turned out their banter, it wasn't important . "Doesn't this thing have a webcam?" He asked, turning to Wilf and Sylvia. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No, she wouldn't let me. She said they're naughty." Wilf gestured accusingly at Sylvia and the Doctor groaned in frustration. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Right. I've got no way to get through then." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Sarah Jane Smith, 13 Bannerman Road." Harriet said and *that* got the Doctor's attention. Why couldn't Harriet leave his friends out of this? Especially Sarah Jane. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Are you there?" Harriet called and the Doctor shivered when he heard Sarah reply. This was going to get them all killed if they weren't careful. If the Daleks caught the faintest whiff of the signal...</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Let's see if we can talk to each other." Harriet pressed a few buttons and three other feeds popped up, one showing Jack, the other Sarah-Jane and the third was static. "Hm. The fourth contact seems to be having some  trouble getting through. I'll just boost the signal." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha faded in and the Doctor's jaw dropped. She looked so different from how she'd looked when the Doctor had last seen her. "Hello?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jack was beaming with delight, "Ha, ha! Martha Jones. Harry, come look, Martha's still alive." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What, really?" A distant voice called back. "Are you telling me that Project Indigo actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>worked</span>
  </em>
  <span>?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A new man, one the Doctor had never met came into view. "Martha, nice to see you're not torn to atoms, where are you?" He asked, eyes bright with curious </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha gave him a dry look. "I guess Project Indigo was more clever than we thought. One second I was in Manhattan, next second I was home. Maybe Indigo tapped into my mind, because I ended up in the one place that I wanted to be." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fascinating.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"But then all of a sudden, it's like the laptop turned itself on." Martha added, halting what looked like a rather lengthy interrogation about whatever Project Indigo was. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It did. That was me." Harriet explained, holding up her credentials, "Harriet Jones, Prime Minister." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>How the hell was she still Prime Minister? The Doctor wondered </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I thought it was about time we all met, given the current crisis. Torchwood, this is Sarah Jane Smith." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I've been following your work. Nice job with the Slitheen." Jack said with his typical smirk while Harry gaped behind him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah, well, I've been staying away from you lot. Too many guns." She nodded towards the teen standing next to her and the Doctor wondered who he was. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jack's smirk turned even more flirtatious. "All the same, might I say looking good, ma'am?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sarah Jane blush, "Really? Ooo." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Not now, Captain." Harriet cut in, "And Martha Jones, former companion to the Doctor." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha almost seemed to go pale, "I'm sorry, ma'am, but that's been a mistake. I never traveled with the Doctor. But how did you find me?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Harriet only took a brief moment to look  stunned by this development before carrying on. "This, ladies and gentlemen, this is the Subwave Network. A sentient piece of software programmed to seek out anyone and everyone who can help to contact the Doctor." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everyone on screen looked slightly uncomfortable for a moment before Jack finally spoke up, "I don't know how to tell you this, ma'am, but the Doctor is gone. He's trapped in a parallel universe." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Harriet's composure slipped and her jaw actually dropped. "But all of our intelligence... there's been consistent evidence of the Doctor for the last few months." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jack and Harry exchange a look. "That's because someone else has taken up the job, more or less." Jack said hesitantly, like he was loath to admit it. "She mentioned meeting you. Rose Tyler?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Can she help us?" Harriet asked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Martha nodded. "We just need to get her here. I've been trying to find her. She's got my old phone on the Tardis, but I can't get through." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That's why we need the Subwave. To bring us all together. Combine forces. The Doctor's, or rather Rose Tyler's, secret army." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jack snapped his fingers and grinned. "Wait a minute. We boost the signal. That's it. We transmit that telephone number through Torchwood itself, using all the power of the Rift." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"And we've got Mister Smith." The boy with Sarah Jane added. "He can link up with every telephone exchange on the Earth. He can get the whole world to call the same number, all at the same time. Billions of phones, calling out all at once." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Brilliant." Harry said with a grin that was nothing short of wicked. It sent a shiver down the Doctor's spine. "Who's the kid?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Sarah's eyes were brimming with pride, "That's my son." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You reproduced?" Harry screeched, only to be pushed off screen by Jack and some new bloke. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Excuse me. Sorry. Sorry." There was a rather loud smack and Harry groaned in pain somewhere off screen. "Hello. Ianto Jones. Er, if we start transmitting, then this Subwave Network is going to become visible. I mean, to the Daleks." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yes, and they'll trace it back to me. But my life doesn't matter. Not if it saves the Earth. They can always elect another Prime Minister." Harriet said and the Doctor felt a sort of begrudging admiration. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jack snapped into a salute, respect evident in his eyes. "Ma'am." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Thank you, Captain. But there are people out there dying on the streets. Enough of words. Let's begin." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Have you got mobiles?" The Doctor asked, tearing his gaze away from the computer to look at Wilf and Sylvia. "A land line? Anything?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Wilf shoved a mobile into the Doctor's hands. "I'll use the landline. You make that call!" </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Early Valentines gift for you all! We're nearly done now</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Chapter 13</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Happy Valentines day!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Three, two, one!" Rose counted down as they popped out of the vortex into open space. </p><p> </p><p>The TARDIS stopped shaking and Donna leaned into the view screen, "Twenty-seven planets. And there's the Earth. But why couldn't we see them?" </p><p> </p><p>"The entire Medusa Cascade has been put a second out of sync with the rest of the universe. Perfect hiding place." Rose explained rapid fire, scanning again for the signal they'd followed through, "Oooh, there it is. Some sort of Subwave Network. Must have been how they pulled us through." </p><p> </p><p>"Rose!" Jack called with delight as he popped up on screen. Rose heard a distant "where the hell have you been?" Before a loud smack and a whine. Nice to know Harry was safe, then. </p><p> </p><p>"Rose, it's the Daleks." </p><p> </p><p>"It's the Daleks. They're taking people to their spaceship." Sarah Jane said at the same time. </p><p> </p><p>"It's not just Dalek Caan." Martha tacked on </p><p> </p><p>"It's Donna!" Sylvia said in shock but Wilf was delighted. </p><p> </p><p>"That's my girl." He crowed. </p><p> </p><p>The Doctor had his eyes locked on Rose's face, scanning for differences, anything that might have changed in their time apart. Her eyes were older, he realized with a start, harder and so much less carefree. And it was all his fault. </p><p> </p><p>"That's Martha." Donna said, pointing at something on screen. "And I got a glimpse of Harry in the back but who's he?" </p><p> </p><p>"Captain Jack Harkness." Rose explained. "One of my best mates."</p><p> </p><p>Donna laughed, "It's like an outer space Facebook." </p><p> </p><p>Rose laughed too and the Doctor coveted the sound. "Everyone except the Doctor." She said softly and the Doctor's hearts ached. She was right there, he was so close and she had no idea. </p><p> </p><p>*** </p><p> </p><p>"Oh." Rose said suddenly, pulling back and fiddling with something. "That's odd." </p><p> </p><p>"We've lost them." </p><p> </p><p>"No. There's another signal coming through, blocking them out. There's someone else out there. Hello? Can you hear me?" Rose called, hoping beyond all belief that somehow, the Doctor was out there. </p><p> </p><p>"Your voice is different, and yet its arrogance is unchanged. Welcome to my new Empire." Rose blinked at the shriveled man on screen. She had absolutely no idea who he was. </p><p> </p><p>"Doctor. It is only fitting that you should bear witness to the resurrection and the triumph," he continued, apparently assuming that Rose was the Doctor. "Of Davros, lord and creator of the Dalek race." </p><p> </p><p>Oh, well that explains a lot. </p><p> </p><p>"Have you nothing to say?" </p><p> </p><p>"I'm not the Doctor." Rose said rather quietly and watched Davros' empty eye sockets go wide. "So I think it's safe to assume you have no idea who I am. How many Daleks I've killed." </p><p> </p><p>Davros laughed, this horrible grating sound that made Rose want to curl in on herself but she stood firm. "You really are not the Doctor. The Doctor would never boast about killing. Where is he? I wish to have words with him." </p><p> </p><p>"Gone. I took up the role. You get one warning Davros. Stop whatever this is. Stop the needless killing." Rose growled. </p><p> </p><p>"The Daleks will never stop. We shall ride across the cosmos until nothing remains but Dalekkind." Davros ranted and Rose closed the network, her hands shaking. </p><p> </p><p>"Right okay. We need a plan. Let's go get Harry. It'd be nice to have a proper Time Lord on our side." Rose said, piloting the TARDIS down to earth. </p><p> </p><p>Donna put a hand on her arm. "Rose, it's okay to be scared." </p><p> </p><p>"I can't right now. I need to focus, Donna." </p><p> </p><p>They landed and Rose went out onto the street, spinning slowly as she took in her surroundings. "Okay so this is most definitely not Torchwood." </p><p> </p><p>Donna came out while Rose talked to the TARDIS. "Right, so she says we're supposed to be here. Donna, we're near your house right? Maybe we need to go get Wilf, keep him safe on the-" </p><p> </p><p>Donna grabbed Rose's shoulder and spun her around. "Rose, look." </p><p> </p><p>Rose cast her gaze down the deserted street and there, at the far end, was the Doctor. She gaped at him, feeling the seconds tick by. His face changed ever so slightly and she could see the beginning of a smile. Her feet started moving before she registered it, pounding over the pavement to get to him. It'd been so long and she'd missed him. </p><p> </p><p>They were closer now, just a dozen more yards when she heard the most terrible thing she'd ever heard: a Dalek screeching out a grating 'exterminate' she started to turn, just in time to watch the bolt fly past her and hit the Doctor.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Chapter 14</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey everybody! Just a quick note that this series will be on a brief hiatus so I can sort out the next fic in this series before I start posting it.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Surprisingly, the Doctor had never been shot by a Dalek before. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It hurt more than he would have expected. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He tried to focus his gaze on Rose, but his eyes didn’t seem to be quite working. She blurred in and out of focus but he could see her well enough to know that she was okay. He was the only one injured. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was crying, pleading that he not die. That was a silly request. He wasn’t going to die, just regenerate. In the middle of a Dalek invasion? Brilliant idea, that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He barely registered being moved, but he was aware enough to feel the TARDIS's consciousness pressing against his, welcoming him home, even if she did sound distressed.  There was something else though, hovering on the edge of his senses. Was that his *hand*? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>That would do rather nicely. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*** </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The second the metacrisis stepped out of the TARDIS, the Doctor knew that he was going to lose Rose again. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The thought hovered in the back of his head, nagging him through the rest of their time on the Crucible. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t a particularly pleasant idea, but it was the best for Rose. And he knew exactly how to do it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*** </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctors, and oh isn't that a bit strange, Rose thought with a grin, were being accosted by Jack and her mum so Rose pulled Donna aside. "Can you go to Torchwood when we drop Jack off? Make sure Harry hasn't gotten into too much trouble?" She glanced over her shoulder to make sure neither Doctor was paying any attention to her. "I need to explain some things." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Donna readily agreed. "You know how much I love playing babysitter to the twit. But it's probably a good idea. Might have him take a look at my head, it's been pounding ever since Davros shot me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah, definitely do that. He'd know the most about Dalek tech stuff aside from-" she glanced over at the Doctors again. "But the Doctor can always do a check when we get back." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*** </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Rose! Tell the Doctor to get his skinny arse, at least one of them, out here. We've got luggage that needs moving." Rose rolled her eyes behind her mother's back and grinned at the Doctors. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Who's coming out with me?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'll keep the TARDIS stable, make sure we're alright on time." The brown suited one said. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Right." The one in blue agreed, offering his hand to Rose as they left the TARDIS. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Pete's got a Range Rover parked at the other end of the beach, a few bags scattered around him and a squirming toddler in his arms. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That's Tony." Jackie informed Rose as they crossed the beach. "He's heard all about his big sister and he's so excited." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor gave Rose's hand a squeeze and smiled shyly. "Stuff of legend." He said quietly and Rose's hearts skipped a beat. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Tony was completely adorable. Red hair, brown eyes and a smile that could charm a Dalek, he beamed when the Doctor introduced Rose and immediately started babbling about stories he'd heard. Rose indulged him, scooping him up in her arms and confirming for him that every single story is true. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Couldn't we all just stay?" Her mum asked suddenly, smiling softly at her children. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I can't mum." Rose said sadly. "I'm not exactly human anymore and I think being separated from the TARDIS like that could kill me." Rose looked behind her at the ship, feeling a gentle brush of affection and curiosity. The TARDIS wanted to meet her brother. "And the TARDIS would die if we kept her here. But if you really want to stay, I won't stop you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I want to be wherever you are. Family stays together." Her mum picked up some of the luggage and started back to the TARDIS. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor pulled Rose to a stop and she passed Tony back to Pete. "What do you mean 'not human'?" The Doctor asked, terror building in his eyes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"After... everything that happened that day," she swallowed, unwilling to say Torchwood. "She and I bonded. I'm part TARDIS now." Grabbing the Doctor's hands, she puts them on her chest, one over each heart. "Two hearts now. I'm telepathic and I can regenerate too." His jaw dropped and she shrugged, "I just have to stay at least in the same universe as the TARDIS because she and I are so entwined telepathically. She compared it to a soul bond I think?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A wave of terror washed over her and her eyes were instantly drawn back to the TARDIS. What had the ship so worried? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The dematerialization sequence started. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No." Rose gasped and her stomach lurched </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She took off running across the sand, the only thought in her head was to stop the Doctor from taking off. The TARDIS struggled too, bucking against whatever the Doctor was doing to get her to take off but Rose felt it the second the ship lost. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There were a few seconds where Rose stood frozen, hovering in an in-between space. The TARDIS is gone, but she could still feel her, even if it was a bit strained. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then the bond broke and Rose dropped to the sand like a broken marionette.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I want to stress that Rose is NOT dead and she will NOT die in this series.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Chapter 15</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Epilogue</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The Master landed with a gasp and struggled to breathe. The Doctor really hadn't been exaggerating when he'd said the trip would be rough, but this was beyond what the Master would call rough. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn't have time to catch his breath. Even taking into account the strange way time flowed between the two dimensions, he only had a little over ten minutes to track down Rose and get her back home. Luckily, it seemed the Doctor had actually managed to get the coordinates right; just through the trees, the Master could see what looked to be the mansion the Doctor had described to him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He ran, feeling every second of his time limit as it grated against him. But he was going to find Rose. And he was going to bring her home. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"I'm so sorry, sir." The man who answered the door said. "Rose Tyler has been dead for years." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master's hearts sank in his chest and he stumbled away from the door. "What happened to her?" He asked, needing to make sure. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"She just vanished one day. Mr. Tyler could give you more information if you’d like me to fetch him?" The man asked, looking unnerved by how distraught the Master was. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master didn't reply, he just hit the return switch on his wrist strap. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*** </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The return trip wasn't much better, but if the howling winds were anything to go by, things on this end weren't going much better. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He met the Doctor's hopeful gaze and watched the hope fade before he even managed to shake his head to indicate what he'd learned. Their plan had failed. Rose Tyler was not coming back. Donna was at his side suddenly, helping him stay steady. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You get drunk while you were gone?" She jabbed, trying to rile him up a bit, but there was no heart in it. He could see the hopelessness in her eyes too. Rassilon was threatening the Doctor somewhere just at the edge of the Master's perception and the Master's resolve hardened. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You're the absolute worst, Donna Noble. Keep it up." The Master said with a rueful grin, before pushing her away from him. He turned towards Rassilon and snarled. "Hey you! High pompous arse!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rassilon turned his gaze onto the Master. "My Lord Master. How fitting that you join us here at the end. That our salvation comes at the hands of our most infamous child." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I am so </span>
  <em>
    <span>delighted</span>
  </em>
  <span> to tell you that I am not Gallifrey's salvation." He slipped his laser screwdriver out of his pocket and leveled it on Rassilon. "You see, I've just discovered that a very dear friend of mine is dead. And, consequently, there's no reason for me to behave myself any longer." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Don't." The Doctor said in a low voice and the Master looked over his shoulder at him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I can do whatever the hell I like. A plea for restraint coming from you is a bit rich, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Time Lord Victorious</span>
  </em>
  <span>." The Master snapped and watched with relish as the Doctor went pale. "Right then, where was I? Oh yes, sending Gallifrey back." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master tossed the screwdriver hand to hand, "This connection really is quite tenuous, Rassilon. Kill me or you before Gallifrey comes all the way through and it'll all go up in smoke. Or if, perhaps, if someone disturbed the diamond and broke its connection." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A sudden scuffle of movement and the entire room shook as the connection between Gallifrey and Earth started to fray. At least </span>
  <em>
    <span>someone</span>
  </em>
  <span> was listening to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You cannot do this!" Rassilon shouted. "I made you!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Master finally fired his screwdriver at Rassilon. "That’s correct. You did this to me! All of my life! You made me! One! Two! Three! Four!" He counted, still firing off blasts from his screwdriver while Rassilon struggled to deflect them. "The constant drumming that nearly drove me mad." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He'd gotten Rassilong backed up close enough to the portal that they would all get sucked back through when it closed. But that was okay. His- his friends were safe. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He chanced one last look backwards, just to double check that everything was fine, and he wondered for a second what Rose would think of all this. She'd probably smack him for being rude. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then the portal closed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>2 </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose leaned back against the rough brick to support herself and wondered what point there was in having a functioning Chameleon circuit if her TARDIS was only ever going to disguise itself as the same blue police public call box that the original had been. Police boxes had been green in this universe but it didn't seem to phase the TARDIS one bit that she was technically the wrong color. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Her entire body ached but Rose held herself firm. She'd already had her goodbye with her mum; Tony and Pete wouldn't have really understood, but her mum had taken it in stride. Now all that was left was the Doctor. Her Doctor. The one who'd stayed with her, had been able to admit his feelings for her, and who'd lived so much longer than any of them had expected him to. But even his brilliant genetics had their limits and she'd lost him, just like everyone else. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She'd been alone too long, she knew that. But what had started as a few quick trips to distract herself from her pain had turned into something so much worse. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Stalking her Doctor through his timeline was not a wise decision. And even if she spaced her visits out, she was limited on how many she could get away with before she risked running into herself or him catching her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But it was all worth it for those scant minutes she got to see him again, alive and healthy. She could hear him coming down the sidewalk and tucked herself a bit further into the alley the TARDIS had landed in. Just a glance. And then she'd never come looking for him again. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He came into view, stopping under the streetlamp just in front of the mouth of the alley to pull something out of his pocket. The halo of light cast shadows across his face but caught on the small box in his hands and Rose couldn't contain her gasp. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She knew that this was the route he always took to get to the pub nearest Torchwood. Had asked the TARDIS to bring her to one of the days he met her there after work. But she hadn't asked for </span>
  <em>
    <span>this</span>
  </em>
  <span> day. Hadn't wanted to risk changing this. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor looked up, snapping the box closed. "Someone down there?" He called, stepping out of the light and further into the alley.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose backed up against the TARDIS and cursed under her breath when it hurt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Rose?" The Doctor asked, picking up the pace a little. She watched his eyes adjust once he was out of the range of the lamp and they widened with recognition when he finally spotted her. "What are you doing out here? We're supposed to meet at the..." he trailed off as he looked her over, taking in her new-ish pixie cut and the subtle signs of aging. "You're not my Rose." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>In any other situation, Rose would argue that she was always his Rose, but she knew the distinction he was trying to make. "No. I'm not." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His posture stiffened just a little, looking like he simultaneously wanted to embrace her and run away. "And where am I, then?" He asked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Gone." Rose said harshly, hoping he would leave it at that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His expression fell and his shoulders slumped. "Right. Why are you here then?" He asked and Rose almost wanted to laugh. He had to know. What reason would she have for watching him from an alleyway? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm regenerating." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ah." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They stood there awkwardly for a moment, mostly because Rose was trying to take her signals from him. This was all a huge mistake; she’d never crossed this Doctor’s time stream before and he’d explained to her how dangerous it had been when she’d run into those past versions of him in their home universe.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The silence between them dragged on until she couldn't stand it any longer. "I miss you." She blurted out, just to say </span>
  <em>
    <span> something</span>
  </em>
  <span>. "The TARDIS feels so much emptier without you. And I keep turning to say something to you but you're never there. It's like those first few months after Canary Wharf but this time I don't have the hope that you could come back." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose wiped at her eyes and startled a bit when the Doctor hugged her. "I'm sorry." He said into her hair. "I'm so sorry that I've left you alone again." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose choked on a sob and wrapped her arms around his middle, trying to breathe in as much of his scent as possible. "It wasn't your fault." Rose promised, hoping to reassure him. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor pulled back just enough to cup her face in his hands. "Promise me you'll find someone to travel with. Go out and find some bright and shining person with enough hope and wonder in their eyes for the both of you. It always hurts when they leave, Rose. But being alone is so much worse. You taught me that." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose nodded, knowing he was right. "I will. But you need to go. Your fiancee is waiting." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The Doctor chuckled. "I haven't even asked yet. Does that mean you say yes?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Of course I do." Oh but he wasn't supposed to know that. He'd been so endearingly nervous when he'd proposed. "But you need to forget that. And forget that you saw me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Brilliant. Love repressing my own memories." He pulled away from her and closed his eyes before suddenly opening them and looking at her again. "But if this is your last chance to hear it from me; Rose Tyler, I love you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose sobbed and slipped into the TARDIS, taking the ship into the vortex as quickly as possible. If she'd stayed a second longer she wouldn't have been able to give him up. And on top of that, she'd already been holding off her regeneration for too long. The Doctor had warned her, what felt like lifetimes ago, that it would hurt. He'd been right. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The pain slowly crescendoed and Rose tried to relax, recalling everything the Doctor had taught her. It was time to move on. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rose closed her eyes and screamed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>*** </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As the Doctor opened his eyes, he could taste the arton energy in the air. He could also feel newly repressed memories tickling the back of his mind. But why would he have to repress his memories? Unless he'd somehow run into a future version of himself. But that didn't make sense. He scanned the alley he was in and gaped up at the massive mural on the brickwork in front of him. A black wolf with golden eyes and an almost mischievous expression looked down at him. And underneath in white letting, were two words. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Bad Wolf</span>
  </em>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Surprise chapter is surprising</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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